Lineman (gridiron football)

In American football and Canadian football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A number of NFL rules specifically address restrictions and requirements for the offensive line. The defensive line is covered by the same rules that apply to all defensive players. Linemen are usually the largest players on the field in both height and weight, since their positions usually require less running and more strength than skill positions.

Offensive line

The interior offensive line consists of the center, who is responsible for snapping the ball into play, two guards who flank the center, and two offensive tackles who flank the guards. In addition to the interior line, a full offensive line may also include an end outside one or both of the tackles.

Interior offensive linemen are not eligible to catch forward passes, and are not allowed to advance more than 2 yards past the line of scrimmage at the time a pass is thrown, whether they are engaged with a defensive player or not. However, ends (whether tight ends or wide receivers) are eligible to catch passes.

University of Mississippi

The University of Mississippi (colloquially known as Ole Miss) is a public, coeducational research university in Oxford, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1848, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven, as well as the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. It also operates the University of Mississippi Field Station in Abbeville. It is both a sea-grant and space-grant institute. Sixty percent of undergraduates are from Mississippi and 23 percent of all students are minorities. International students come from 93 nations. Ole Miss is Mississippi's largest university with a total enrollment of 23,838 in fall 2015.

History

Founding, expansion, and tradition

The Mississippi Legislature chartered the University of Mississippi on February 24, 1844. The university opened its doors to its first class of 80 students four years later in 1848. For 23 years, the university was Mississippi's only public institution of higher learning, and for 110 years it was the state's only comprehensive university.

National Football League

The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league consisting of 32 teams, divided equally between the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC). The NFL is one of the four major professional sports leagues in North America, and the highest professional level of American football in the world. The NFL's 17-week regular season runs from the week after Labor Day to the week after Christmas, with each team playing sixteen games and having one bye week. Following the conclusion of the regular season, six teams from each conference (four division winners and two wild card teams) advance to the playoffs, a single-elimination tournament culminating in the Super Bowl, played between the champions of the NFC and AFC.

The NFL was formed in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association (APFA) before renaming itself the National Football League for the 1923 season. The NFL agreed to merge with the American Football League (AFL) in 1966, and the first Super Bowl was held at the end of that season; the merger was completed in 1970. Today, the NFL has the highest average attendance (67,591) of any professional sports league in the world and is the most popular sports league in the United States. The Super Bowl is among the biggest club sporting events in the world and individual Super Bowl games account for many of the most watched television programs in American history, all occupying the Nielsen's Top 5 tally of the all-time most watched U.S. television broadcasts by 2015. The NFL's executive officer is the commissioner, who has broad authority in governing the league.

American football positions

In American football, each team has 11 players on the field at one time. The specific role that a player takes on the field is called his position. Under the modern rules of American football, teams are allowed unlimited substitutions; that is, teams may change any number of players after any play. This has resulted in the development of three "platoons" of players: the offense (the team with the ball, which is trying to score), the defense (the team trying to prevent the other team from scoring, and to take the ball from them), and the special teams (who play in kicking situations). Within those platoons, various specific positions exist depending on what each player's main job is.

Offense

In American football, the offense is the side which is in possession of the ball. It is their job to advance the ball towards the opponent's end zone to score points. Broadly speaking, the eleven players of the offense are broken into two groups: the five offensive linemen, whose primary job is to block, and the six backs and receivers whose primary job is to advance the ball by means of either running with the ball or passing it. The backs and receivers are also commonly known as skill position players or as eligible receivers (or eligible ball carriers). Offensive linemen are not usually eligible to advance the ball past the line of scrimmage during a play.

NFL Network

NFL Network (occasionally abbreviated on-air as NFLN) is an American sports-oriented cable and satellite television network that is owned by the National Football League (NFL) and is part of NFL Media, which also includes NFL.com, NFL Films, NFL Mobile, NFL Now and NFL RedZone. Dedicated to American football, the network features game telecasts from the NFL, as well as NFL-related content including analysis programs, specials and documentaries. The network is headquartered in the Los Angeles suburb of Culver City, California, and broadcasts its worldwide feed from Encompass Digital Media (formally Crawford Communications) in Atlanta, Georgia.

As of February 2015, NFL Network is available to approximately 71,867,000 households that subscribe to a cable, satellite and telco television service in the United States (totaling 61.7% of U.S. households with at least one television set).

Background

NFL Network was launched on November 4, 2003, only eight months after the owners of the league's 32 teams voted unanimously to approve its formation. The league invested $100 million to fund the network's operations. NFL Films, which produces commercials, television programs and feature films for the NFL, is a key supplier of NFL Network's programming, with more than 4,000 hours of footage available in its library. As a result, much of the network's highlights and recaps feature NFL Films' trademark style of slow motion game action, sounds of the game, and sideline conversations between players and/or team staff.